Karma
by Mephiles
Summary: Shortly after the events of Sonic Rivals, Silver tracks Eggman Nega down to a remote location. Here he meets a strangely familliar girl, and begins a journey unlike any other. Silvaze. COMPLETED
1. SideTracked

Mephiles: This is just a quick note to clear up some obvious confusion that this fic might entail. First of all in Sonic 06 at the end time is altered by the removal of Solaris. Because of this Silver never grew up in a world destroyed by Iblis and never knew Blaze. This continuity follows up after the events of Sonic Rivals and Silver has now pursued Eggman Nega to a unspecified location of space.

Chapter 1: Side-Tracked

Silver's sensitive head-spines swayed gently in the breeze, picking up subtle details, like moisture in the air, or wind speed and translating it straight to his conscious. He took a deep, slow breath, exhaling calmly as he opened his large golden eyes.

He slowly rose from the rocky perch he had used to meditate. Surveying his surroundings with well-trained eyes, as he sniffed the air for any familiar scents. _'Nothing' _he thought to himself glumly. _'Absolutely nothing' _Silve_r_ lashed out with his foot in frustration, kicking up the ground and soil before him and sending tiny rocks hurtling through the field.

The field itself was about as beautiful and serene as you could possibly want. A tranquil meadow of emerald green grass, which swayed slowly back and forth like waves on the ocean. A sparkling azure sky hung above with not a cloud in sight to mar its perfection.

Silver gazed longingly at the paradise around him, his heart aching to stop and rest. _'Just a short stop, yes, it couldn't possibly hurt…' _He thought to himself as he felt the cold wind ruffle his coarse white, namesake fur.

'_No! I cannot allow myself to be side-tracked' _He mentally chided himself, forcing his body to lurch onwards as he kept his gaze fixed before him, blotting out the tempting field around him. _'I've already lost to much time as it is, I've got to find Eggman Nega' _He reminded himself over and over again, chanting it like a mantra.

Unfortunately for him he also managed to blot out the small stream directly below of him.

"Aaagh…" Silver blurted as his foot caught on a sturdy rock and he suddenly found the stream rushing up to meet his face.

SPLASH! Silver thrashed around momentarily, sending crystal clear water soaring all around him. He grunted in annoyance at his own lack of attention as he levered himself up with his front hands. As Silver lifted his head from out of the water he found himself staring into his own reflection.

Golden eyes surveyed equally surprised golden eyes as Silver stared back at his mirror image. He hesitated, temporarily halting in standing up, as he stared down at his image. He hadn't changed much, at least not on the outside; he was still albino and still a Hedgehog. However he had taken to wearing a tight, dark leather suit equipped with all types of utilities necessary for what his missions entailed.

The practical suit was easy to don, easy to wash and afforded maximum protection for minimum restriction of movement. He had taken to wearing it ever since…

'_Blue Hedgehog?' _Silver shook his head violently, futilely trying to dispel familiar images from his mind.

'_Get a grip Silver, day dreaming is exactly why Nega keeps getting away you have to focus, don't get side-tracked' _He reminded himself curtly. He took one last look at the now messy puddle beneath him before setting off towards the dusk horizon.

* * *

The little girl examined him critically from her vantage point atop a rocky outcropping. She had been watching for some time now as he blustered around in circles, obviously lost beyond all rational belief. She had remained hidden from his sight by skillfully hiding herself atop a rocky crescent behind which the sun was setting. As it slowly lowered down, daylight giving into moonlight, the glare though, beautiful, blinded anyone looking straight at it. 

Her form was but a thin silhouette against the bright glow.

'_That's familiar' _she thought to herself as he began to approach the outcropping. The Silver Hedgehog was of small proportions and didn't appear so frightening at a glance, at least his physical form alone wasn't. Further examination revealed that he was obviously not a Hedgehog to be crossed. A dangerous light glimmered in his eyes and his walk bespoke of a clear confidence in his abilities. His head was disproportionately large and boasted an intriguing half-star set of spines, which swayed back and forth as he walked. His entire body was covered in a professional, albeit foreboding, suit of dark leather, which hid almost his entire body from observation. Leaving only a few small patches of his albino fur to clash with his apparel.

The suit left no question as to what his job was and the girl heaved a sad sigh at his apathetic approach, trampling beautiful flowers and bugs indiscriminately under foot, whilst completely ignoring the Glade around him. _'Not exactly how I remember him, but I knew some things would of changed, he couldn't of stayed exactly the same' _She thought to herself, disappointed by the Hedgehog's harsh and dispassionate countenance.

_'Still, he was her Silver and she had been waiting far to long to deliver this message'_

She continued to herself, reinforcing her resolve. She smiled gently and began to walk towards the Hedgehog.

* * *

Silver walked onwards with his head bowed, paying attention to the path his feet were taking, so as to avoid another embarrassing mishap like what had happened at the stream. Despite this he found his usually focused mind constantly wandering back and forth between memories and dreams. Like watching a badly tuned television, flashes of people and places constantly interrupted his thoughts, though he was certain he had never seen before. 

Silver shook his head vigorously, wishing with all his might he could just forget the sordid affair. As if his own mind was out to betray him, an unfamiliar face suddenly flashed through the recesses of his mind. It wasn't so much a problem that he kept seeing things, all his time spent alone hunting for Eggman Nega had caused him to long ago come to doubt his mental stability. No, the thing that scared him most about these visions was that they didn't seem like random facets of his broken mind trying to communicate to him on a deeper psychological level, no they seemed more like, well…

"Memories," he murmured to himself quietly

The entire event had happened not so long ago, at least in one sense, in another sense it had happened several hundred years ago. Either way it still confused Silver to no end. He had long ago stopped trying to figure out how time travel worked.

Anyway, the fact of the matter was that he had pursued his quarry to the distant past, or at least a distant past, only to lose Nega's trail. Eventually he had only managed to discover and defeat Nega with…Help. Much to his chagrin.

The help had come in the form of a cocky Blue Hedgehog and what appeared to be his morbid and somber doppelganger. The entire trip had been far to disturbing for Silver's taste, and that was okay. He did deal with Nega and his psychotic schemes on an almost regular basis so he was used to it.

What disturbed him wasn't Nega, it was…

'_Blue Hedgehog? Why did he seem so familiar?' _Like an itch where he just couldn't reach, memories and experiences he had no recollection of seemed to lurk, tantalizing him as they held the answers to his crisis, dangling it just beyond his reach. Like a flood it threatened to overwhelm his every dream with a lifetime he remembered but knew he didn't live.

'Every day I fight my enemies and win, yet every night I fight for my identity and lose to myself' Silver quirked his lip, at allowing himself such a, albeit slight, poetic introspection into his own mind. 'If only he could remember then maybe…' 

"Excuse me, excuse me?" Silver jerked, turning roughly at the unexpected touch. Allowing his telekinesis to flare around him as he prepared to engage his assailant.

The little girl examined the Hedgehog glowing with teal flames with barely suppressed wonder. Then she smiled. "Your funny" She giggled to herself as she walked up to him, disarming him with the most innocent smile he had ever seen, and probably ever would see.

"Ummm, Okay" He said awkwardly, closely examining his little guest. The girl was small, probably six or seven. In shape she resembled an anthromorphic cat of some sort, covered in a lightish pink fur with a red spot on her forehead. Her hair was tied up into a knot on her forehead.

"Can I Help?" Silver queried, hoping to break the awkward silence, which seemed to of settled between the two. The girl seemed unphased by the situation and instantly adopted a thoughtful expression, appearing to dig through her mind for something hidden.

'_This might take a while' _Silver thought to himself as he took a long and exasperated breath. The girl's eyes lit up like light bulbs, their radiance flashing over the entire area momentarily.

"You could walk me home!" she squealed attaching herself to his arm as she giggled happily to herself.

"What!" he yelled, in outrage shaking his arm furiously, but to no avail, the girl appeared to have merged herself to his arm. Silver groaned in frustration.

'_I don't have time for this' _He reminded himself. Silver looked down at the girl, she stared up at him with the most pathetic little pout he had, and ever would see.

"Alright let's go" He consented, resigning to his fate. The girl smiled.

"Your still so naive" she said with a slight smirk

"What?" Silver asked in alarm. The girl merely hummed, trailing ahead of him. Silver stared in a mixture of shock and a strange, yet unsettling feeling of…

Familiarity.

'_One way or the other it looks like today I'm going to be sidetracked' _He thought to himself

The End... For now!

Mephiles: Please drop a review and some critical criticism is always appreciated, thanks for reading and i hope you enjoyed it. I'll try to put the next chapter as fast as I can


	2. Ghost Town

Mephiles: Yayyy the next chapter is up, thank you for all reviews they are always greatly appreciated. As for your question concerning Blaze, don't worry I'll anwser it in the story at a later point suffice to say it deals with tthe nature of multiple realities and dimensions and the effects that tampering with the time stream can have. Thanks alot and I hope you enjoy this next one.

Chapter Two: Ghost Town

Silver trudged on miserably, silently praying for some or other miracle to liberate him from his torment. His "tormentor" seemed to be oblivious to his obvious discomfort and continued to prattle on nonsensically, about topics ranging from her favourite colour to the state of the weather.

Silver merely grunted periodically as a means of response, hoping that she would eventually realize his lack of interest and shut herself up for the rest of the journey. His hopes were in vain though; as the girl's optimistic mood appeared to be a barrier no known force could penetrate let alone break.

"How much farther?" Silver pleaded, interrupting his companion's spirited discussion with herself about the nature of rainbows and whether they truly held enough magic to create their very own pot of gold.

The girl looked up at him, her mouth still open as the final words of her conversation died away slowly into the back of her throat. Silence reigned temporarily and Silver relished the brief moment, feeling as if it had been almost a lifetime since he had last experienced it.

The girl, having gathered her thoughts pointed towards a near hillock. "Just over that hill, Mr." She answered in her annoyingly cheerful and jolly manner. Silver winced as the brief silence was shattered once more by her relentless desire for conversation. He raised his head to examine the lush, green and wooded hillock.

"But you said that three hills ago" Silver whined, his controlled and serious manner abandoning him in the face of a torture the likes of which he would not even of wished upon Eggman Nega. The girl flashed him one of her blindingly radiant smiles, and Silver flinched at the sheer perfection of her sparkling teeth.

"Don't worry I promise that there will be no more hills after this one, just have faith" Silver gaped again at the strangely mature and wise words, so at contrast with her normal tirade of pointless small talk.

* * *

Silver breathed a deep sigh of relief as he finally crested the hillock's apex. There, in the valley below, as the girl had promised, was a picturesque little village. It seemed to personify the term quaint, along with homely, and perhaps a little bit of nostalgia thrown in there somewhere as well. 

With a squeal of delight the little girl scampered down the incline towards her home village. Silver could not help but smile a tiny bit at the girl's unbridled joy. One day, he promised himself, he would have that to. _'As soon as you actually catch Nega that is' _He reminded himself curtly. Silver turned himself to leave, his mission complete, but after a few moments found that he had not moved an inch.

Silver stared curiously at his stationary feet and then felt his gaze drawn inadvertently back towards the girl's hometown. _'No Silver, remember your mission, you've already fulfilled your obligations to her' _His sense of duty reminded him. Silver blinked and stared down at his rebellious feet. "Traitors" he hissed at them, but found that the acidic tone of his voice wasn't enough to persuade them. _'She's so young, she could get hurt, or never find the right home' _His conscious lamented to him. _'Oh come on the village is tiny, everyone probably knows where she lives, she doesn't need our help' _Silver guessed that was either cynicism or a rather perverted common sense.

'_Since when did my thoughts have personalities of there own'_ Silver pondered and like that his head was clear. Silver looked down at the many houses. At last, and with a horrid wrenching feeling deep down in his stomach, he began to walk towards it.

* * *

"Ahhhh… Little girl" Silver called out awkwardly to the air around him, fiercely berating his lack of sense at not asking the girl her own name. To his disappointment the air held no answers, it merely hovered, empty. _'Empty? Wait a minute, where are all the people?' _Silver's eyes roamed around the no longer homely looking village. Up close it was a rather creepy place. For one thing it seemed to be abandoned. 

"Silver?" Silver spun around raising his forearm before him, a nimbus of teal power flickered about him, as a several bricks found themselves roughly pulled from their mortar to form an adequate shrapnel wall. Silver gazed at the voices location but saw nothing. He allowed the bricks to fall slowly to the ground, keeping a wary eye out for any unwanted surprises.

Silver continued his search through the village, which to his mind seemed to have become surprisingly large all of a sudden. The voice had been that of a female, a mature, regal tone almost like one an older sister would of used. It had, like so many other things to his dismay, seemed quite familiar. As if he had been rather well acquainted with its user in some past life. The longer he thought about it the closer and closer those memories seemed to come.

Flashes of fires and a ruined world, of fighting of destruction… of him, younger and fueled with passion, and of…

"Bl…bl…Bla" The words were ripped from Silvers tongue as he swiveled his head rapidly towards a small alleyway which appeared to of materialized as if from nowhere before him. From in its bowels Silver could hear echoing shrieks, shrill screams of terror and desperation. Abandoning his caution by the wayside, and leaving his brief quest for memories buried deeper within his mind, he raced down the alley.

He allowed his powers to wrap itself around him, creating an aura of teal light to better illuminate the dank confines of the hidden alleyway. He came to a sudden stop, feet skidding across the cobbled road, as he came to rest before a dire scene.

The little girl he had met from before was now desperately attempting to escape the clutches of a much larger assailant. She squirmed and writhed in his grasp but to no avail, as the larger figure seemed to be completely unbothered by her attempts at escape. The assailant's attention appeared to be resting completely on Silver now. Or at least so Silver believed, the figure did not appear to have any eyes, but a affixed blob like shape atop his humanoid torso gave the definite impression of a face. Swathed completely in dark bandages covering almost every inch of his form from view, the few patches of bared skin were a horrible gray colour, appearing lifeless and leathery.

"Let her go" Silver demanded, once he had recovered from his curiosity at the creature's bizarre from. He squared his feet and bent his knees, dividing his weight evenly between both feet. His telekinetic powers doubled in strength, the teal light about him shining even brighter, the intensity of his power forming harmless flames of light that caressed his form gently.

The creature gave a raspy breathe and dropped the girl turning to face Silver, it let loose a terrible wail, shaking the ground around it before leaping towards him, Large claws slicing through it's bandages as it lunged at Silver. Silver leapt aside in time, lunging out at the creature's now exposed underbelly with a forceful thrust of psychokinetic power. The air rippled in its wake, forming silent shockwaves, which slammed into the creature.

Rather than flying back as he had expected, the creature's underbelly burst, black bandages and gray skin parting to reveal a set of long and prehensile tentacles. Each one writhed of it's own accord, thinning out towards their point's and ringed with black and white flames. The tentacles sprouted forth and quickly entangled Silver before hurling him into a nearby wall.

Silver yelped in pain as his body smashed against the hard wall, dust and debris fell about him as he slowly raised himself. His vision swam before his eyes briefly and he could taste blood in his mouth. He just had time to identify the shadowy blob moving rapidly towards him, before he felt his world explode around him as blackness claimed his sight.

Silver lay on his back, at least he hoped it was his back, as his thoughts and mind spun above him like the cosmos, slowly fading away from his grasp. Slowly…slowly…fading. "No' Silver whispered, although he had a feeling it had probably come out as a bloody gurgle. "No" This time their was no doubt as to what he said.

Slowly, with pain wracking every inch of his bones, his nerves screaming at him as if there was fire running through his veins, Silver rose. First one leg, shakily rising, and then the other. Silver raised his back, straightening vertebrae by vertebrae until he was once more upright.

He took one more deep breath to remind himself where he was, raised his hand calmly out towards the back of the creature which was once more approaching the girl and concentrated.

WHAAAAAM. With all the force of an atomic reaction, scintillating waves of teal energy slammed into the creatures back. Wave after wave fell upon it, until, with a storm of dust around it, the entire town was obscured from view.

Once the dust had settled, and Silver had stopped hacking and wheezing himself to death long enough to open his eyes, the creature was gone. An immediate sense of emergency fell upon him and he searched left and right furiously for the little girl. He breathed a sigh of relief as he found her, half obscured behind a broken wall.

"Are you alright?" Silver asked, surprised to find himself genuinely concerned for her well-being. She looked up at him and gave a small smile. "Thank you Silver, I can now give you my gift without any further hassle" The girl looked up at Silver, meeting his stare with her own.

But to Silver she was no longer a little girl. He now stood face to face with a tall feline, deep eyes filled with eons of wisdom stared into his own, regal apparel adorned her feminine features and silky fur covered her entire form. Silver gaped as she extended her hand and placed it on him slowly. There was a flash of white light, a flood of images overcame Silver and a single thought ran through his head, _'Blaze'

* * *

_

Throughout the entire town not a noise was heard, silence reigned supreme settling with renewed vigour, furious at being momentarily supplanted by the three noisy life forms. They were gone now and not a soul was left in a village. All that remained where the ghost's of memories dwelling in their ghost town.

The End

Mephillies: As always I hope you enjoyed it and will appreciate a review or two. Thanks For everything


	3. A Question of When

Mephiles: I apologize if I've caused confusion but the story is most certainly not finished and will not be for some time as I have several confusing theories to explain before I call it quits. So please note their will be **another** Chapter after this. As always I hope you enjoy and will appreciate your reviews.

Chapter Three: A Question of When

Silver's world was engulfed by light, bright piercing light, which seemed to sear through his eyes into his mind, branding his thoughts like a hot poker. With a sudden mental wrench, all his memories seemed to come loose, toppling outward as the light forced them out, pouring forth from his conscious and pooling before his mind's eye.

He saw snatches of his entire existence, highlighted moments of his waking memories, as his life literally flashed before his eyes. _'I really should have been more social' _He thought to himself regrettably, mentally wincing as he saw himself pass puberty again and silently marveling at the strange lack of worry or concern he felt at his peculiar predicament. _'Oh well, on the bright side you at least won't have to worry about failing your mission anymore' _Optimism reminded him. Silver didn't like being optimistic

Slowly the bright light began to recede and Silver even risked opening his eyes a little. Embolden by the fact that he was no longer suffering an endless sequence of flashbacks and confident that he was not blind Silver opened his eyes completely and…

"OUCH" Silver's cry echoed outwards from him in all directions, attracting the attention of everything in close proximity to him and accidentally deafening some sensitive mammals in the area.

Silver could not of cared less though, as he was currently howling in pain as he clutched his left leg to him so tightly, that you had to wonder whether he was trying to cut off his blood circulation.

After a short and rather humiliating sequence of one-legged hopes and unmentionable curses, Silver finally stopped cringing long enough to look around himself. He had fallen, if falling was the right term, from the blinding column of light into what appeared to be…

"No way" Silver said to himself as he gazed in a mixture of shock, horror and disbelief at the world before him. Where their had been fields of Elysian grass their was only ash. All around plains of black charred earth stretched for miles in any direction. Unnatural flames leapt from every available vent and pore, scouring whatever life remained in this hellhole.

Silver could make out no horizon, as the sky appeared to have been replaced by a fast blanket of smoke. Lightining crackled at regular intervals creating the only source of illumination in the bleak landscape. Except for the flames. The Flames. Silver found he could not take his eyes off of them, not that this was hard, as there appeared to be flames wherever you looked.

But to him they meant more. Something about them jarred at is mind. He stared, mesmerized by the breathtaking beauty yet simultaneously repulsed by the untold destruction that it had caused. As he stared into the crimson flames he began to make out shapes. At first they were just formless blobs, slowly dancing around each other, but as he stared he began to see more, so much more.

Within the flame, or his own mind even, he could no longer tell where one began and the other ended a young hedgehog fought. Within the flame he was fighting, fighting an insurmountable tide of monstrosities as all around him the fiery tide lay waist to homes, people, animals and nature indiscriminately.

There was no safe haven from their wrath, no mercy. They were relentless. With each one destroyed a thousand more would be ready to take its place. Soon Silver could see himself overwhelmed, feel himself overwhelmed. He howled in pain as the creatures forced him into their fiery embrace, slowly consuming him.

"ROOAAAARRRRRRRRRRR" The roar rent the world in two, the earth trembled beneath it. Silver's head snapped back so quick he could feel it crick. He panted heavily, staring back at the flame he had been engrossed in before. _'Was I…Inside of it?' _Silver thought, thoroughly puzzled. For a moment he had felt as if it had been him personally battling against those creatures, losing to them as they dragged him down.

Silver tuned his head towards the roar and gaped. Some distance away the most terrifying creature in his memory reared above the forsaken world. It was enormous, so large that Silver could not think of appropriate adjectives to describe it. It appeared in a classical demonic form, with molten magmas and a hard coal body replacing red and black flesh. Four monstrous and damaged horns sprouted forth from its vaguely reptilian face, a titanic mouth and colossal arms merely added to its terrifying visage.

Silver had not taken any of this in, as he would have been running rather than standing his ground if he had. But to Silver the only thing he realized was…

"IBLIS" Although he had no idea how he knew the name and what possible reason he could have to hate the creature so much, he could not suppress the rage.

Reason and control were flung aside as rage and hate boiled through him, seething to the surface. His powers flamed around him, growing with the inferno in his heart. Teal fire engulfed him and spread out warping the air around him until it rippled in the wake of his advance.

He threw himself forth, telekinetic power burning inside of him, as he race through the sky towards the fiery terror. Farther and farther he flew, higher and higher the flames of the creatures body lapping against him, contrasting savagely with his own flames as the colours clashed and fought. Finally he reached its face and hovered level with the creature's enormous eyes. Golden eyes stared deep with resolution into a set of equally resolute red eyes. The battle was set.

* * *

From far away a feline made her way rapidly towards the scene. Anyone watching would soon become aware of her erratic behavior though. Her body seemed to jerk at inappropriate times, or jump seconds after she had tripped. The entire scene could lead one to believe that the feline probably hadn't had much experience in the body for some time, or enjoyed imitating a badly maneuvered marionette. 

'_Faster, got to go faster' _She urged herself onwards, constantly keeping a sharp eye as she made a beeline towards the battle before her. Although all she could see was a tiny insignificant speck of white, wreathed in teal flames, as it hovered before a Blazing Titan of destruction.

* * *

Silver struck first, lashing out with his arm he allowed his powers to lance out in a focused beam from his palm to the creature's forehead. It slammed into it with a resounding crash, smoke and coal hurling outwards from the creature's face and spilling past him. Any stray pieces of shrapnel approaching Silver soon found themselves deflected by a barely visible, luminescent barrier of power. 

As the smoke cleared, it revealed a deep furrow in the monster's forehead. With a roar of outrage it lashed out with one of it's enormous arms towards the tiny speck, which was Silver. Silver easily dodged the blow, slipping under the beast's clumsy attempt at attack and pressing onwards to land in the deep furrow.

The monster let out another roar of fury, brining up both arms above it's head, as it prepared to smash Silver to a pulp. Silver rammed his hand deep down into the creature's head, concentrating as he struck out with all his power, channeling it directly from himself into the creatures mind. The monsters arms fell numbly to its sides as it began to emit a hellish roar, shaking its head violently from side to side.

But Silver would not let go, the more he dug his power into the monster's mind the more he learnt. Like with his own mind images began flooding him, but these were not the small incoherent recollections he was used to. This was like watching it on the big screen, sound blaring around him as scenes unfolded one by one containing nothing but death He saw flashes of cities burning, of children screaming as they were engulfed in flames, of futile attempts to stop the monster. To stop Iblis.

Iblis…Iblis…IBLIS. The word filled every inch of him with fury; he struck deeper down then ever before, tearing the barely sentient creature's mind asunder in vengeance. _'To kill so many, with no reason, yet it doesn't even know that there are other life forms on this planet. It's…' _Silver could not continue the thought.

His coherency was overtaken by mindless rage as Iblis's mind overwhelmed his senses. Then it stopped, as if someone who Silver would forever be indebted to had suddenly pressed the pause button, and silence settled around him. _'Is this still Iblis's mind?' _Silver thought to himself. Slowly a new scene began to unfold, but there was no death in this one, although there was certainly the desire for death. In this final scrap of Iblis's mind Silver saw.

"Me?" He asked confused. The other Silver smiled. "YOU ARE MINE SILVER THE HEDGEHOG" As the words echoed forth from the world around him, he saw his copy smile, then vanish in a flash of fire as the scenes began again, but Silver was in them now.

Iblis struck back, his every word tearing away what precious grasp on reality Silver still had, scourging his mind clean of rationality as it burned within him. Ash and blood was all around him, he could see it, smell its venomous reek, and he could even hear the final cries of Iblis's victims.

With a final roar, Iblis forced Silver from his mind and dug deeper into Silver's own. Silver caught a last image of a burning face and an evil chortle, before his world became as black as the one around him.

* * *

'This world was devastated before I was born, a harsh, bleak place. Life is a struggle and the people live without hope, how did it get this way? No one will answer me directly but the always point, to the flames.' Iblis. The memory hovered through Silver's mind as he flitted in and out between consciousnesses, repeating itself over and over again as he grappled with his mind, seeking answers to his predicament. 

"Who am I?" He asked, not aware that he had said it out loud.

"Your very brave, but a bit reckless in my opinion," Silver jerked upright at the unexpected response. He quickly recognized the mysterious cat girl from before, when his head started to spin all of a sudden and his stomach seemed to come up into his throat. He vomited.

"See, you should have waited till you were feeling better before you got up," She told him in a calm and collected manner, seemingly nonchalant about the strange situation. Silver watched her warily, once he had recovered of course, and memorized her form to his mind… purely to better understand her if she was a foe, of course, and not at all in appreciation of her appearance, as that would have been just plain foolish. Of course.

'Get a grip, she showed up, your in a different world now, find a solution!' Responsibility reminded him. 'Don't trust her, she's obviously working for Eggman Nega' Silver thought, courtesy of paranoia. 'Stop thinking for me' Silver roared at his own mind. A bit upset at his inability to control his thoughts.

"Tough isn't it, controlling your thoughts" Silver stared, flustered by the girl's control of the situation. "Go on ask the question we both know you want to ask" Silver thought briefly about asking some ridiculous and obscure question merely to spite her apparent 'all-knowingness' but excused it as an immature fantasy and asked the logical question.

"Where am I?" he asked as he looked about his apocalyptic surroundings.

"Where? Your just outside Crisis City of course" she answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Silver stared dumbfounded. She smiled, causing Silver no end of awkwardness as he felt little jolts in his stomach. "That doesn't help you though does it?" she said with her wane smile.

Silver shook his head, currently at a loss for words, and desperately hoping he wouldn't end up with a bunch of memories he didn't recall ever experiencing before this trip. "That's because we're currently in a sort of alternate time zone, where in certain events have yet to come about. Events which will irrevocably change you, me and the timeline of this dimension in a similar manner as to what happened in your own dimension," she volunteered all in one breath.

Silver blinked twice, and thought about her statement slowly. Ulterior time zone? Own dimension, irrevocably changing the timeline? 'Ah great, more time travel' He thought bitterly.

"Hence the appropriate question would not be a question of where, but rather a question of when?" she said with a sigh, looking around the burned city as if it was a nostalgic haven of sweet memories.

Silver paused. "Sooooo? When?" He asked with a wane smile of his own.

* * *

Mephiles: So thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it, please drop a review if you want and thank you to everyone who has already reviewed. Again their will be more chapters and I ask that you keep in questions concerning Blaze, Silver, Iblis, Solaris and the reason why he has no recollections of anyone from 06 as they will be answered in due time by the story. Thanks for everything. 


	4. Homes Where Your Heart Is

Mephiles: Sorry this one took so long but I have been very busy recently and could only try my best. There will be another chapter after this and in it I will finally explain what's going on with Blaze and the dimension jumping. as always I hope you enjoy my effort and will listen to any criticism you have.

Chapter Four: Home's Where your Heart Is

"Walk with me" The strange cat girl responded, casually rising to her feet and motioning towards him to follow her, apparently not concerned by the crumbling buildings, choking clouds, fiery pits and furious storms, or any other disaster to be found on this deathtrap of a world.

Silver followed at a steady pace, matching her speed but making sure to keep a few steps behind her so as not to expose himself to any unwanted surprises. _'Careful Silver, she's up to something' _paranoia warned him, paranoidly.

"Iblis did this, all of it. Our world was beautiful until he came" She eventually said, her eyes wandering across the ash-strewn wasteland. Her voice carried in it regret and pain. But there was also a deep sorrow, a sorrow Silver felt he should know, and a sorrow he should somehow share, but for the love of him couldn't possibly remember. _'She's playing games with your mind Silver,' _Caution, cautioned him.

"I know," Silver answered, clenching his hand reflexively, he was beginning to regret his mental assault into what passed for the fiery beast's mind. It's thoughts, so enormous and ancient, in comparison to his own seemed to have etched themselves into his mind. The more he tried to dislodge them the harder it became to ignore them, images of a dying world and innocents slaughtered, images containing not a single semblance rationality, merely a burning thirst to spread and keep on spreading till only flames were left.

'That's not what's scaring me though, not really' His conscious reminded him. What had really scared him, what had made his blood run cold even in the heat of this infernal blaze was the connection. Somehow, beyond his control he knew Iblis, he felt Iblis. In every brick, in every little fire he saw memories. Memories he swore he shouldn't have. 'Your obviously just confusing images you absorbed from Iblis's memory with your own memory, obviously' Logic calmly assured him. Logic was such a liar. 

Memories of a life spent fighting the inevitable destruction of his home seeped through every fiber of his being, a life spent fighting to protect the innocent, a life spent with no home, no life, merely the dream of an absolution yet to come. Silver shook his head, _'Why is everything always so confusing, who the heck am I?' _He thought to himself, his frustration drowning out all of the other voices busily clamoring to have their say.

"You still haven't answered my question, where or when am I? And who are you?" Silver asked, halting his march and staring at her. She halted a few paces ahead and turned to face him. She smiled, and Silver could have sworn she had suppressed a laugh. "Always to the point, never bothering to take in the world around you. In some ways you haven't changed at all" She said.

'_Haven't changed? Why does she seem to know more about me then I know about myself?' _His thoughts enquired rudely. Silver shunted them temporarily to the side and re-affirmed his question. "When am I?"

She heaved a sigh, slowly turned around and continued walking. Silver followed her hoping to get some form of answer eventually. "You are home Silver, in some way or another you have come home" She anwesred after a while, her voice strangely neutral. "Home? I was definitely not born here," Silver stated bluntly, beginning to doubt the validity of his companion's claims.

"No, you were born here once, just you in particular were not born here. But Silver The Hedgehog did originate from here, where do you think all those memories come from hnmmmm?" She inquired gently. _"Memories, how does she… Who is she? And what in the world is she talking about?' _His suspicion demanded of him.

"Who are you?" he asked, no longer able to rationalize his situation to himself, he had to know now who she was and how she seemed to know him or at least who he used to be. "I am Blaze the Cat and I have a lot to show you about yourself, you are more important than you realize Silver and have grave decisions to make in order to insure your timeline" She replied calmly before continuing. "What you see now is the original time line you hailed from and my original home, however due to yours and others brave actions this time line was averted and instead the one you exist in now came to pass" She finished in one breath, to Silver's shock.

"You can show me why I can remember the past more clearly then my own life?" He inquired, hopeful at this faint chance of realization and revelation, which now dangled so temptingly in front of him. A chance to understand why he felt so out of place in his own time and knew so much more about other times. He had to take it.

'If you are willing to see your home" She replied evenly. Silver nodded. "Show me the way."

* * *

The cat girl came to a sudden stop, lifting her head skywards to contemplate the starry sky above her; at least she would of if the sky wasn't completely obscured by a blanket of smog. Silver, however, found his gaze suddenly fixated by a strange ruin. The building had obviously been grand in it's past, with a towering canopy and arch complemented with bright colors and archaic engravings, but all of it's former splendor had long ago receded into the ash along with it's structural integrity.

"It was a wonderful place once, full of life and happiness," She said turning her own gaze to stare along with him. Silver continued to stare, hardly noticing her comment, to absorbed in his own futile efforts to sort through the all of the jumbled up thoughts roaming through his head.

"It was beautiful once," She said, her voice carrying a tone of empathy. Silver slowly began to get the uncomfortable feeling that she was expecting something from him. An awkward silence ensued, settling heavily between Hedgehog and Feline as they continued to mutually stare into the ash heap. Silver searched his mind desperately for something to say, feeling as if it was almost his duty to continue the conversation.

"I wonder how many beautiful things have been erased from Earth's history merely because they lacked the strength to endure?" He asked to no one in particular after a while. He glanced at his companion, hoping to gauge her reaction to his statement. To his enormous disappointment, he appeared to of upset the girl. Her face was now lowered and a grim shadow seemed to of settled over it, casting an ominous gloom over her entire form.

"Strength? Is that all you think about?" She asked, her voice quiet and sad. _'Nice work Silver, brilliant choice of words' _His sarcasm drawled, biting his ego visciously. He turned to stare at her directly now. She rose her gaze to meet his own. Her eyes were large, and carried so much emotion that Silver felt scared that he might be washed away in their depths.

Heat rose slowly, burning at his cheeks and slowly consuming his face. The strange feeling was unlike anything he had ever felt before; it paralyzed every nerve of his body. His normally endless reserves of calm and control seemed to be slipping so fast; he was beginning to doubt he ever actually had them. His heart beat like mad, thundering against his chest with more force than he could imagine. His hands twitched of their own violation, as the agonizing feeling wracked his entire body.

'_What's she doing?' _He thought to himself, his eyes glued to her own beautiful orbs, his mouth opening and closing, thoughts racing through his mind. Yet his body refused to answer, overwhelmed by feeling it merely stood there, stupidly, floating away on the simultaneously horrid, yet wonderful feeling.

"What are you so afraid of?" She asked simply. Her sadness replaced by an earnest curiosity, an almost desperate desire to aid. She reached out one of her hands, tenderly placing it on his own.

Silver stared back, his fears and hopes shining through his eyes as he gazed back at her, clutching her warm hand softly in his, own cold one and…

"EEEEEEEEKKKKKKKK" The screech tore through the place like a Lightining bolt. The new feeling vanished as soon as it had come; al warmth left his body as the all to familiar cold and calm of control found itself back into his heart. He turned away from the girl, directing his attention instead to the source of the wail.

The emotional turmoil, which had raged alongside his misplaced memories, was gone, replaced by an empty void of iron discipline he had perfected during a lifetime of solitude. Although he was grateful to be rid of the confusing emotions, a small treacherous part of him couldn't help but miss the fleeting moment.

The wailers were approaching fast, covering ground at an unnatural speed as they raced towards the two. Silver prepared himself, adopting a proper battle stance. Almost upon them now Silver's heart plummeted as he recognized the approaching duo as identical creatures to the one he had thought with in the ghost town.

Both were roughly humanoid in shape, with blobs for heads, their skin resembled little more than a pale leather fabric stretched thin across them. Long claws grew from two armatures extending from their upper torso.

Silver steeled himself for the coming engagement silently, closing his eyes as he focused his mind, drawing off the reserves of power, which lay concealed deep within the subconscious section of his psyche.

Somehow it wasn't so difficult to draw on the power here, it seemed to flow so easily from his soul that it did not so much seem to be a instrument of his will as it was a part of his spirit. He felt at home using his powers here. _'But this isn't your home' _His logic argued.

Silver paused for a moment. It wasn't where **he** had been born, true. _'But home's not a place, it's a feeling, it's knowing where you are and knowing who's with you' _Silver contemplated in silence. _'Yes, after all it's like they always say, Home's where your heart is' _Silver had never felt more at home.

Mephiles: Thanks for reading and please stay tuned for the next chapter where I will begin to unravel what this fic is really about. Besides that I hope you enjoyed it and will continue to type till the Fiction is done. Thanks for everything and enjoy all the best wishe from Mephiles.


	5. Karma Is?

Mephiles: I apologize how long this update took and hope you enjoy the story. As always a review or two will be appreciated. Thank you

Karma Is…?

Silver leapt, propelling himself backwards from the spot he had previously occupied. He braced his landing with an outstretched hand, kneeling to better absorb the shock of the impact. As he raised his head he saw a streak of colour, as the gray blur of one of his assailants thrust a clawed hand into the space he had just left.

By the time Silver was standing erect again the second foe was already hastening its approach. Silver extended his hand, his body encircled in a telekinetic aura, as he took careful aim for the monster's one distinguishing feature.

WHAM! The bolt of psychic force leapt out from Silver's hand and straight into the creature's single malignant eye, it reeled backwards as Silver channeled shockwaves of force further into it. Rather than bursting to reveal a new set of pseudopods, as Silver's earlier foe had this one seemed to reel back, its body loosing constituency as it dissolved into a puddle of gray matter.

'_Bull's eye!' _Silver barely had time to complete the thought before he found himself lifted off the ground and slammed backwards into the scorched earth below him. The remaining creature issued a triumphant roar as it began to lash out with its claws.

Silver stumbled in his haste to get up, giving the creature an opportunity to strike out at him. Long black claws raked deep scars into his chest, burning marks, which seared in the hellish heat around him. Silver took the creature's next blow and allowed his body to roll with the momentum of the creature's force.

By the time he had gathered himself again, he rose into a crouch from his escape roll, relieved to see he had cleared some distance from his attacker. His joy was short lived as, to his horror, the gray ooze which had been the first attacker seemed to have molded itself back into a fairly anthromorphous gray form.

The two attackers now waited, patiently watching the albino Hedgehog, their single, large baleful red eyes fixed upon his form. _'What are they waiting for?' _Silver thought to himself, his telekinetic powers vanishing momentarily as his mind drifted to his thoughts, rather than his focus.

With an alarming wail, the two creatures leapt at him, his momentary lapse of concentration was all the time they needed to ram bodily into him. Silver felt his world shatter for a brief second as existence swam around him and all the colours became blurs, before he fell with a sickening crunch. His body smashed down into the ground and he felt the back of his scalp tear as sharp fragments of tar and graphite splintered into his head.

His more immediate concern though was the sweltering heat, which suddenly wracked his body. He leapt to his feet, sweat tingling down his skin as the air around him warped, the superheated molecules moving so fast that the space before him seemed to ripple like water.

'_Great'_ He thought to himself sarcastically as he took in his surroundings. The two creatures had bodily rammed him into a shallow crevice in the pavement. The crevice was singeing hot, and Silver could feel fresh pain shooting through his feet. _'Endure it, endure it' _He ordered himself, using his psychokinetic power to erect a teal aura about himself, creating partial protection from the heat.

Entering the crevice from above, his foes levitated slowly down, circling like vultures around their prey. _'Stuff it!' _He thought to himself irritably as he prepared to take a step forw…

Silver took a hasty step backwards, retreating several yards as the ground which had lay before him erupted, a jutting vent of infernal flames gushing out of a thin crack in the mortar. An ominous rumbling noise quickly alerted him to the presence of a similar vent behind and he managed to evade the vent just in time as a flame shot out of it.

A sharp wail brought his attention back to another immediate threat; the two creatures had calmly placed themselves within the crevice and seemed unaffected by the rushing flame pillars. _'Great, I've got two shapeless gray blobs after me, in a superheated crevice with systematic flames shooting out at random intervals from the ground, could it get any worse?' _Silver thought to himself glumly.

One of the monsters issued a low cry, it's torso coming open to reveal vicious tentacles similar too the ones Silver had seen the first time he had fought the creatures back in the Ghost Town. Silver stared in shock. _'I was being sarcastic!' _He thought to any benevolent cosmic force that was in tune with his thoughts. Sadly no help seemed forthcoming. The one devoid of tentacles flew towards him in another display of its blinding speed.

This time though, Silver was ready, he calmly extended his hand, his palm facing outwards towards the monster's form. The creature continued its onslaught regardless. _Three, two, one…' _Silver counted smugly in his head. Right on que, the vent before him expelled yet another blast of super hot flames. The stream moved briefly up, Silver closed his eyes, channeling his thoughts and mind into the flame as he willed it into a new shape.

A flash of teal light emanated forth from Silver's outstretched hand, mingling with the flame, the two combined, flaming forward. The unfortunate creature had no time to stop, and quickly found itself wrapped in the telekinetically controlled flames. It gave a brief cry of anguish, before vanishing in a puff of black smoke, slowly trailing up into the sky.

'_One down…' _Silver's train of thought was rudely interrupted, as the creature that his thoughts had been hoping to refer to, whacked him to the floor with one of it's writhing tentacles. Silver let loose a yell of pain as he only narrowly dodged a heat vent, the fire searing his back.

The monster on the other hand seemed unconcerned with his pain and as one its many tentacles slowly stretched forth to grasp Silver in their folds. Silver, unable to concentrate, as he spent his efforts busily leaping to avoid the flame traps all around, was unaware of the encroaching doom.

Silver spun around, a bright flash catching his eye, as he turned he saw the tentacled monster which had been creeping up to him burst, it's own body suddenly wracked with flames. Once the fires, and the monster, were gone he looked around, searching for the cause of his miraculous rescue.

"Look out!" Silver turned to face the voice, and suddenly discovered himself being hastily pushed out of the crevice. By the time he had been pushed over the edge his rescuer now stood panting above him, providing some much needed shade.

"You" He managed to say before his rescuer once more reached down, firmly grasping him and, to his immense surprise, bodily lifting him off the ground.

He stared dazed at the cat-girl's surprising demonstration of speed as she forced him into a side alleyway. "You saved me," He said, his mind still trying to get around her surprising display of strength and pyrokinetic power earlier.

"Quiet!" Was the cat girls only reply.

He turned his head to get a look at what she was so closely scrutinizing on the street. He wished he hadn't as two familiar gray blobs floated from out the crevice. _What the! What do I have to do to kill these guys?' _He thought to himself angrily. The two began to make their way slowly towards the alley. Silver tugged on his companion's arm, trying to get her attention. She merely shrugged him off and continued to stare at the creatures.

'_Is she suicidal/' _He thought to himself as she merely stood; apparently content to let the creatures find them. Closer and closer the figures came, their painstakingly slow advance causing Silvers nerves to frazzle seemingly endlessly._ Almost, almost_, in a few more moments they would be completely on them.

"I can't take it…" Whatever else Silver might of planned in his protest as he leapt out to face them quickly died in his throat. He let out a strangled gasp as he found himself forcibly grabbed by the neck and pulled back into the alleyway by his companion. He stared at her in disbelief. She matched his stare with her own, cold and calculating one.

"What are you?" His question would never get further though as his attention was once more directed towards the gray monsters. The first moment that Silver looked he could make out the blob's constant approach on their location and then… then there were no blobs?

Silver blinked…and blinked again. Where once had been two gray blobs, their was now a fiery foot print, which lead up to a fiery foot, which lead up to a fiery leg, which lead up to a fiery body, which all finally accumulated in a giant towering fiery monstrosity that Silver could quite easily identify as Iblis.

The creature issued one titanic roar, drowning out all noise in the vicinity, after stomping on the two monsters and then set off on its mindless course, trampling the city beneath its mighty feet.

* * *

It was a while after that Silver finally recovered from his shock long enough to speak. By this point he and Blaze had made their way up to a moderately scorching ruin, with a clear view of Iblis's colossal form slowly dwindling as it trudged on to an unknown location. 

"How did you know Iblis was going to step on them?" was the first thing Silver said, as he directed his attention to Blaze. She turned to him with a thoughtful look, her dainty lips pursed and her brow furrowed deep in concentration. Silver silently groaned as he felt familiar awkward feelings growing inside of him again.

After a moment of this uncomfortable silence she finally turned to him with a wry smile. "It was Karma," She answered. Silver stared at her confused.

"What is Karma?" He inquired, intrigued by this completely foreign word. She lifted her head and gave a short laugh, which sent strange chills down Silver's spine.

"So many questions, first where and then when, now you want to know what Karma is? In what order do you want me to answer you?" She inquired in good humor. He allowed himself the liberty of a small smile and took a seat. "First I want to know where and when in detail." He told her firmly.

Blaze took a deep breath, preparing herself for a long explanation before ploughing ahead. "This is a alternate dimension, one which resembles the original state of the dimension you hailed from," She said calmly, motioning to the world around her with eloquent fingers.

"You say my dimension was like this, if so, why do I have no recollection of it?" Silver asked.

"Because in your dimension, a convoluted set of events eventually led to time itself being completely rearranged, resulting in your current state of being and dimension" She answered, slowly turning to him.

Silver stared at her curiously. "I suppose then that the strange memories I have are rather recollections of my previous state of being?" He guessed, the pieces having fallen together nicely inside of his mind.

"Correct, I believe that the unique nature of your psychic abilities granted your mind a semblance of dimensional omnipotence allowing your subconscious to record events which have technically never happened" She said, before standing to head towards an open plaza.

Silver followed suit, intrigued by the information this being seemed to hold on his…previous life? That was one way of looking at it he supposed. She paused once in the center and faced him directly, her eyes staring into his own as she seemed to contemplate every inch of his being. He felt a strange sense of comfort at her attention, but quickly dispelled it as a meaningless and pointless feeling.

She smiled. "Would you like to see the actions of your past self and your future selves, would you like to know why you can remember people from the past and know their names, would you like to see what actions have led you to become who you are and where your actions will lead you?" She inquired in her firm, calm, yet compassionate voice.

Silver frowned turning his eyes down, refusing to meet her piercing, yet strangely lovely gaze. _'Don't do it, remember your mission, Eggman Nega must be found!' _His duty reminded him, harshly chastising him for his forgetfulness. _'What to do?' _he agonized within his mind, all his thoughts clamoring for his attention trying to make their opinions heard.

In the background though a small feeling began to grow, not a loud and noisy thought, but a feeling. A state of mind that slowly spread throughout his entire body. Somehow he could **feel **he had to go, he couldn't explain why and he didn't plan to.

All his life he had allowed his control and thoughts to make his decisions for him, it was time to follow his feelings. Silver turned to face her again. "Show me?" he asked. She smiled, and waved her arm. Like magic the space before her collapsed, leaving a gaping black hole in the sky.

She walked to it and beckoned him to follow. As he approached he turned to her one last time and asked, "So…what is Karma?" She smiled back at him with hopeful eyes. "Karma is…you… and me… and everything else in the universe, it is knowing we are always and will always remain a part of each other, that no action or life no matter how insignificant is ever wasted" She said and stepped through the void.

Silver took one deep breath and for a moment his thoughts threatened to overturn his choices once again. He merely turned towards the calm and soothing feeling, and found his feet.

Silver stepped through and the void closed behind him. All throughout the world only fires burned. Testaments to Iblis' tenacity.

Mephiles: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. Please leave a review if you can. Thank you


	6. LifeSized Mirror

Mephiles: Sorry if this took long but I've been very busy. This chapter is sort of an Interlude to the second part of the story and excuse it if it is brief please. As always I appreciate reviews and comments of any sorts and hope you enjoy it.

Life Sized Mirror

"THUD!" Silver tried to let loose a cry of pain, but his vain attempt was muffled by the grass he had fallen into, face first. "Could you please choose a better location, I don't enjoy hitting the ground face first every time," Silver requested with as much dry humour as he could muster.

Blaze merely held up a hand to silence him, motioning with her free hand that he should follow her. Silver paused for a moment, taking out time to thoroughly scrutinize all of his surroundings.

They were on a field, a veritable ocean of emerald leaf blades. With his naked eye he could see for miles in any direction, his view only blocked by the tall cliffs of a wide canyon, which encircled the grassy plain.

Ahead of him, Blaze moved rapidly towards the other end of the field. As Silver came closer he slowly realized that she was heading for a small hillock, appearing as nothing more then a small bump in the grass. Silver could of easily mistaken it for a wave, were it not for the fact that it was indisputably a hill.

She came to stop, her feet skidding in the ground as she attempted to brace herself and cancel out her momentum. Her slim figure was briefly obscured by a small dust cloud, which slowly floated up from her feet.

Silver eventually managed to reach her position atop the hill, and crouched on his knee's breathing heavily as he tried to catch his breath from the exhausting run. He turned an eye towards Blaze, and found that she seemed to be completely unphased by the run. She stood calmly her eyes scanning the plain for something elusive.

'_How the hell does she do it?' _He thought, annoyed at her excellence. He picked himself up after catching his breath and turned to survey the grass with her. The wind whistled through the grass, as if whispering to it some secret omen. The small blades rustled in anticipation, eagerly awaiting something.

"Soooo…what are we looking for?" Silver inquired after a few moments of fruitless searching. Blaze allowed a smile to find it's way slowly unto her face before she answered him.

"Sonic" with that she directed his attention with a subtle gesture of her fingers, towards a small blue speck. Silver's eyes widened in shock as he identified the familiar blue silhouette of Sonic The Hedgehog, moving rapidly through the grass.

However his attention was soon drawn to another figure who lay wrapped in his arms.

"Who's she?" Silver inquired of Blaze. Blaze, who hadn't removed her eyes from the scene, responded in a distant tone of voice.

"Her name's Elise, she has got a lot to do with your past, or at least she did." Silver turned his head to look back at the two figures, waiting for something to happen. Eventually Sonic came to a stop, as he stopped, he was momentarily lost from view, his shape changing from a blue blur into a decidedly anthromorphic Hedgehog.

As always Silver had to marvel at the Hedgehog's blinding speed. Far below the Hedgehog and girl seemed to be in the middle of a conversation.

"So what does this teach me about myself?" Silver asked irritably, he wasn't really in the mood to meet Sonic again. Blaze let loose a small sigh, indication of her own annoyance at Silvers impatience before swirling her hand before in a florid gesture.

Silver watched in mute shock as another Hedgehog suddenly burst onto the scene. Announcing his presence with a flash of telekinetic energy, which barely missed the blue hedgehog, Silver was amazed to see… himself?

'_It can't be' _His logic kicked in immediately. But no matter what his logic wanted him to believe, he could not deny that before him stood, well, Him! Not that they were exactly the same mind you. No this Silver looked younger, and wore simple boots and gloves as his only adornments. He was younger too, the passion flaring in his eyes revealing that he was still naïve over worldly matters.

"What's going on here?" Silver asked of Blaze, as he stared wide-eyed at his doppelganger and Sonic. Blaze pursed her lips, a thoughtful expression crossing her serene features as she searched for a most apt answer.

"You are preparing to kill Sonic the Hedgehog" Blaze stated.

Silver turned to look Blaze in the eye, hoping to find some trace or hint of rationality in the scene before him. As he turned to watch the scene below, he was greeted by the high-pitched wail of Elise in dire need of help. A mechanical contraption of some sort swooped in and took the girl, leaving a stunned Sonic behind.

As the machine flew off into the distance, Silver craned his head in its direction as he tried to discern the rider of the device. Unfortunately the device was too fast, and quickly zoomed off before Silver could identiify its rider.

Meanwhile, The other Silver had already sent another sphere of telekinetic energy swirling into Sonic's back, knocking him to the floor and leaving him open for another attack.

'_Why? Why would I just attack him, this makes no sense, their must be a reason why' _Silver thought to himself as he saw his doppelganger move in to mercilessly dispose of the blue hedgehog once and for all.

"Why do I want to kill him?" Silver asked, as he turned to watch Blaze again. Blaze took a deep breath, closing her eyes in concentration, she moved her hand in a very brief motion, and the air seemed to warp in the wake of her movement, rippling slowly outwards until the entire area was engrossed in silent tremors.

As these tremors receded, the air seemed to still, the leaves ceased to sway and the two hedgehogs froze in the midst of their strife. Silver gaped at the miraculous event, staring wide-eyed at the calm perpetrator of the action. _'She can do all that?' _He thought to himself in alarm.

"How-" Silver began but he was cut off quickly before he could finish.  
'First let me ask you a question" She said. Silver closed his mouth and nodded, consenting to her request…for now.

Blaze stared deep into Silver's own eyes before she asked her question, and Silver could feel an uncomfortable feeling rising inside of him, a sort of gentle and soothing heat…he quickly dispelled them as treacherous thoughts from some deep forgotten recess of his mind.

"You agree just killing him is wrong?" Blaze enquired, earnesty and seriousness plain on her face. Silver nodded. _'Obviously, killing is wrong' _He thought to himself. Blaze seemed to be relived by his answer, a small smile of relief painting itself slowly on her face as her body relaxed and she let loose a small laugh.

Silver stared, confused at her reaction to such a simple and obvious question. It took some time, but when she did finally notice his curiosity she quickly hid her relief and turned to face him seriously again. Despite her controlled demeanor, Silver could now quite clearly make out a tinge of joy in her eyes.

"However" Silver said abruptly, drawing a concerned look from Blaze.

"However, if your reasons to kill are right, then it is alright. So my question stands, why do I want to kill Sonic?"

Blaze seemed to understand this and nodded to him. With a flick of her wrist a portal similar to the one in Iblis's dimension formed.

"Then let us investigate why you wanted to kill him," She said, motioning for him to follow her through the portal.

Silver halted before the portal's entrance and turned to regard his feline friend with interest. "These portals, they take us to different points in my life don't they" Silver asked rhetorically.

Blaze gave a simple nod before giving him the pleasure of a wry little smile. "Like having your own Life-Sized Mirror, you could say" She said, a hidden trace of childlike glee evident in her voice. She turned to the portal and leapt inside.

Silver paused for a moment, reviewing once again exactly what he was doing. He gave up after a while though since all he ever kept coming up with was that he was mad. _'Life-Sized Mirror, eh?' _He thought to himself, amused.

Silver steeped through the portal and it sealed behind him.

* * *

Unnoticed by him, two other figures quickly emerged from where the portal once stood. The creatures were grayish and anthromorphic in structure, with large baleful eyes and horrid claws.

They stared for some time at the now vacant t area the portal had inhabited before one finally turned to the other. The two stood, silently staring at each other for a while, and a low buzzing noise suddenly became evident to all those in the area.

When the buzzing stopped, a void like portal formed and the two slithered through it.

As they left and the last portal sealed, time began to flow again. The wind rustled the grass and the grass swayed in the breeze, unaware of the temporal spectators their timeline had played host to.

Mephiles: Hope you enjoyed it. It is an interlude...NOT THE END. The story will continue for some time. Hope you enjoyed it and thank you for reading it. Please drop a comment if you can.


	7. Que Sera Sera

Mephiles: Sorry this took so long but I'm really getting swamped with test and have a lot of studying going on. This chapter has a rather sad ending but I'm hoping to clean up any loose plot threads in the begining of the next chaper as well as explaining exactll why Blaze needs Silver to realise that he musn't become obssessed with finding Eggman Nega. It ties in with the whole, the universe is linked Karma plotline which the story is labeled for. Anyway it will all boil down to Silver having to make a important decision over whether it is right to just kill based on what you have been shown. Now in the Sonic 06 game he eventually chooses to not kill Sonic because he is shwn that Sonic is good, but that doesn't really apply to who he must choose to kill or let live. By the way I wonder if any of you can guess what decision Blaze is trying to get him to change to save his future. Do you know who's life he must choose?

Ciel: You're thinking on the right track with your theory, hopefully I'll clear it up next time. Thanks for the reviews

azngirlchibi: Thanks for all the support

New Guy the First: I'm glad you've enjoyed it. Thanks for your reveiws

hamhamhaha: Thank you for your review, I really means a lot to me

Chapter 7:

Que Sera Sera

Silver's world was engulfed in a swirling tornado of darkness, images flashed before his eyes of places and times he had, and never would know about, not to mention some he really didn't want to know about. All of this passed in a second, a very long and drawn out second, and before he knew it his vision was replaced with a cold and battered floor which was eagerly rushing up to meet his face for a rude landing.

Silver landed with a loud "Oomph!" as he extended his hands before him to brace his landing, refusing to start his third dimension jump with a howl of pain. Blaze made a neat landing, falling feet first unto the cold, hard floor and rising to her full height in a single graceful move, Silver half expected her to do a quick pirouette or two to finish off the display. _"Obviously" _Silver thought to himself bitterly as he picked his body up from his nasty little landing _'Jealous are we?' _envy interjected into his thoughts in a rather envious tone. Silver mentally blinked in surprise, he hadn't had a thought from envy since…well…he hadn't had a thought from envy. He rubbed the severely bruised back of his head tenderly as he squinted at Blaze.

He quickly made an analysis of his surroundings, a cold dark metal corridor in what appeared to be some kind of bunker. The lights were almost all out, either broken beyond repair or just unresponsive. The entire hall was showing obvious signs of structural decay, the roof was cracked and rubble littered the floor, moss had begun to spring up on the walls and dirty pipes jutted out from crevices leaking brown water, if it could truly even be called water. _'Great, the cesspool dimension' _Silver's sarcasm announced in a rather droll state of mind. _"If your not going to be useful then keep quiet' _Silver roared, mentally of course, trying to keep his complex multi layered mind under his control.

'_And what hellhole of an alternate dimension have we fallen into now?' _Silver wondered to himself as he gazed around what was left of the compound. His attention was quickly caught by a sound. It was quiet, which explained why he hadn't heard it at first, but now he could clearly make it out. He turned to Blaze, imagining she would give some or other cryptic clue or piece of advice like she always did.

In response she merely nudged Silver, motioning for him to follow her. The two made their way down the abandoned bunker, their way guided by the strange sound of voices, ever loudening voices. By the time they had reached a door in the wall, Silver could quite clearly hear the speakers and their words. As he and Blaze turned the corner and looked into the room, Silver was overcome with another enormous feeling of déjà vu, but luckily, since he'd been experiencing it the entire day or was it a year…or month…or maybe it was a century? Regardless he was quickly getting used to déjà vu.

Inside the room was Himself, well one identical to the younger Silver he'd seen in the previous dimension accompanied by a taller dark looking Shadow. Almost identical to the Shadow Silver had encountered on his trip to the past, except for gray streaks rather then red one's, and Blaze…

'_BLAZE!' _His thoughts yelled at him so loud he could of mistaken it for an audible voice. Silver stared in shock at the feline who stood before him, a mirror image of his time traveling companion in every way, down to their facial expressions. He walked forward slowly entering into the small space of illumination, which the three figures occupied. To his immense surprise the three appeared to be oblivious to his existence. _'That makes sense of course, your existence hear is probably merely as a conscious energy form, making you for all intents and purposes invisible to mortal beings such as these' _Silver's logic told him, kicking into high gear as it tried to sort through the overwhelming number of confusing facts his mind had been busily absorbing, desperately trying to stave off what it saw as an assault on it's ability to rationally decipher the most bizarre and complex of situations. Silver had always been a bit too proud of his abilities and this was a trait his thinking patterns had mimicked from him.

_'Yes, but then why could Iblis and those strange monsters see us?'_ His perception countered, up for a little mental banter and ready to prove that Silver's logic wasn't the only one carrying its weight around. Silver grunted, he'd been hoping his multi-faceted mind would keep quiet during his journey of introspection and respect his desire to absorb this information without having to dissect it all for its deeper meaning. It seemed his hope had been in vain once again. You just can't keep a good thought down. 

'_I'll ponder the irrationalities of dimensional travel later' _Silver thought to himself curtly, quitening his mind, he was still in charge of his own mind, he hoped, it was time he started acting like it, No more pep talks from his own brain, it was just embarrassing. He took a tentative step forward reaching out his hand to place it on the Blaze who was in such an animate conversation with her two peers.

"Stop!" Silver's reflexes served him well, and his fingers pulled away almost immediately, he turned to face Blaze whose face had suddenly grown worried as she stared at her doppelganger. Concern creased her face, puzzling Silver. _'What's she so worried about, I'm invisible to them after all' Silver_ thought to himself as he withdrew from the Blaze look alike to stand next to the panicked Blaze.

Blaze turned to him, her eyes dodging nervously around the room as if she was searching the entire place for invisible intruders. Silver stared at her long and hard, before he asked in a slow tone of voice "What are you looking for?"

Blaze's head instantly snapped to meet his and her eyes were alight with indignation, twin fires burning behind her glittering eyes. The fathomless orbs suddenly resembling the charred world he had seen Iblis on. Silver took a step back, not wishing to be exposed to her full wrath. He didn't feel fear much, so fear felt obliged to take every little opportunity it could to obstinately sit itself in his heart.

"Never, ever, touch a person understand?" She asked, her voice quiet and taunt with fury and…concern? Still Silver guessed it would probably be an unwise move to disagree with her at this point so he merely nodded his head in mute shock. She cooled down once he did this. The flames in her eyes slowly fading back into her soul as she once more became relaxed, calm filling her form. Silver silently marveled at the miraculous transformation. From fire queen to loving friend in a few seconds. _'Did I just use the words Loving and Friend to describe someone' _Silver thought to himself in no small amount of surprise. He groaned as an all to familiar feeling began to grow in his much abused stomach. _'Yes you did, and you should probably get used to it. She really wants to help you'_ it was a small thought, minute compared to the others Silver usually dealt with. It was unfamiliar to; Silver didn't have a clue where it had sprung from.

'_Excuse me, but who are you?' _Silver thought to himself, and he thinks he's not crazy. _'I'm that much neglected part of you. You can call me Bloody Obvious or Are you Blind you Moron! Both are very eloquent' _His thoughts provided most unhelpfully. Silver grumbled a short thanks and turned to watch the real life movie, opting to ignore his latest little friend in his own mind.

'I'm sorry I exploded like that but if you at all interfere with a person, then you cause a imbalance in dimensional energy which will have the Judicators swarming in on us in literally a single second," Blaze said in her normal, gentle tone. Like a mother telling a child that even though he made a mistake she would still love him. Silver couldn't help but find comfort in the fact that she was willing to forgive him; usually people wouldn't give him more then one chance. _'It's not exactly their fault, you don't exactly advertise yourself as a people's person. I guess we're just lucky she can see something in you that you can't' _Mister Bloody Obvious butted in once again.

"What are Judicators?" Silver asked. Blaze sighed softly as she closed her eyes in contemplation.

"Those shadowy creatures you fought, they are Judicators. The facets of multiple enormous Super-dimensional consciousnesses which attempt to ensure that all timelines proceed on their proper cause. They would instantly attempt to erase interlopers like us, fearing we might tamper with reality," She answered calmly.

Silver nodded slowly, afraid to nod quickly for fear that his brain would begin to slosh out his ears. _'So much information' _He thought to himself, his head hurting from the overload it was experiencing. After giving it a minute or two to cool down again Silver tried to sort things out in his head. _'I'm currently jumping through time/dimensions in which my life has taken a different course, so it's sort of like watching a movie. However there are now interdimensional history police who will swarm me if I try to interfere with an event,' _That sounded about right to him.

"So why exactly are we in this time frame, what am I meant to learn from this?" Silver asked, now that the imminent danger had passed. Blaze quickly strode to the other side of the room, making sure not to bump into any of the three creatures before she answered him.

"We are here to find out what your motive for killing Sonic is. You did after all argue that killing is right if done for the right reasons." Blaze informed him as she lifted her one hand to rest casually on her hip. Silver nodded. Blaze smiled and motioned with her hand to the scene playing itself out before them. "Listen," she said quietly. As if someone had suddenly unmuted the entire world, sound rushed in to replace the pristine silence, which had held dominion before. Numerous mechanical and digital noises rushed to meet Silver's sensitive ears as the large computer screen on the wall suddenly sprang to life. On it digital images flashed. Familiar images of the fire strewn world Iblis had inhabited.

Had Silver been closely paying attention to the numerous little statistics and pictures flashing on the screen then he might have realized that he was once again in the dimension he had first jumped into. But since he didn't, let us not dwell on faint possibilities but rather on the reality of the situation.

"The one responsible for this tragedy" The dark Hedgehog said slowly, his voice was calm and controlled, containing a depth of menace, which made his rather simple mannerisms and voice come across far more ominous then it should of.

The Black and Gray Hedgehog extended his hand towards the Silver doppelganger. Clenched tightly within his fist Silver could make out a glowing jewel, incased in a purple aura, which pulsed outwards. The doppelganger Silver accepted the mesmerizing gem, staring deeply into it's glittering surface. _'A chaos emerald!' _Silver realized as he felt a nostalgic power wash over him. The crystals power was almost palpable.

"I can see him, a Blue Hedgehog!" The doppelganger Silver exclaimed suddenly, bringing Silver back to reality. The doppelganger turned from his contemplation to stare at the shadowy hedgehog again, his face full of confusion and a sort of….Hope. Behind him the mirror image of Blaze walked towards the conversation, her arms folded as always as she gazed thoughtfully at the two hedgehogs.

"Blue Hedgehog?" Her words were slow, denoting her calm and even temperament even in the face of these bizarre circumstances. The doppelganger Silver didn't wait for confirmation to his feline friends odd question, his eyes glowing with passion he raised one of his hands, revealing a clenched fist.

"So if we kill him, we can save our future?" The doppelgangers words were determined, his demeanor resolute. It appeared the idea of killing for a greater cause bothered the doppelganger as little as it bothered Silver himself. _'Naive little boy, he can't be sure that this Hedgehogs telling him the truth. I would never let myself fall for such a cheap trick' _Silver thought to himself, feeling disappointed that his alternate form was so foolish and reckless. Completely unlike him, he'd never rush into anything without thorough planning. Not to mention the way he was willing to trust anyone as soon as they promised him salvation. Now he would never fall for a trick like that, that's why he worked alone. He learnt long ago the only person you can really rely on is yourself.

The dark Hedgehog stood motionless for sometime, as if his mind was crossing some vast and inconceivable void. His gray and lifeless eyes glimmered like mirrors, revealing none of his soul but rather reflecting the viewers back at themselves. Silver couldn't keep his gaze, even though he knew the Hedgehog couldn't see him, he couldn't shake the feeling it was somehow taunting him.

Finally, and with a heavy slowness to his movements, the Hedgehog nodded. Somehow his every action bespoke of some sort of ageless wisdom. Antiquity seemed to radiate out of him, as if he had somehow been here before. The very ground beneath him seemed to groan below him. Silver didn't know what the presence was but he was sure he'd seen a similar effect on the world recently.

The Hedgehog slowly lifted its hands, glittering fields of purple light streaked outwards from him, engulfing the entire room, as they grew brighter and brighter blotting out the entire world. When Silver's vision finally returned to normal the room was empty. _'That power, I've felt something like that before. But where?' _Silver thought, racking his mind for solutions. _'Now would be a good time to help' _He thought, hoping that his mind would help shed a little insight on the problem. Luckily for him his memories felt liking helping to solve a problem, rather then causing one like they usually did.

'_Iblis, Iblis had a similar aura' _His memories proposed. Silver winced as the all to familiar images flooded his mind again. He'd almost forgotten the pictures of carnage Iblis had etched into his mind after their battle. Almost was unfortunately not good enough and the horrible monster's memories were as fresh as ever in Silver's own. But his memories were right, both Iblis and Mephiles seemed ancient without peer. As if they were timeless, already aware of all events to come. Their slow and purposeful actions were almost identical.

Silver shook his head, trying once more to dislodge Iblis's thoughts from his head. He had about as much success as he had last time. Groaning in defeat he turned to face Blaze, resigning himself to living with the monsters own memories.

"Well, what do you think about killing Sonic now?" Blaze asked, beating him to the question. A strange expression hovered over her face, somewhere between nervous and hopeful. Silver looked away, he didn't feel right looking at her in her eyes, her wonderful eye's. _'What does she want me to say' _A small voice asked worriedly inside of Silver's brain. There was no shortage of answers; a literal cavalcade of advice came spinning from his mind lodging itself in his conscious. Logic wanted more facts to deliberate, duty and loyalty just wanted to get back to work, memories wanted more memories and even Bloody obvious was skeptical over what to say.

Silver closed his eyes, calming himself as he allowed the chorus of his divided thoughts to subside and searched within himself. _'What am I looking for? Does she really want me to tell her what I think? Why should I? I mean what has she done for me? Dragged me from one hellhole to another? I shouldn't feel guilty for my actions; I've lived my entire life helping the weak. Who does she think she is? Trying to judge my actions.' _Silver's calm introspection soon turned to an embittered rage. He'd followed through on this entire crazy quest of hers and silently accepted everything she'd said. She had so far shown no evidence of being any better then he was.

He turned to her with a scowl. Her own face soon turned to concern, a series of indecipherable emotions flashing through her crystal eyes. _'Good, let her be confused for once' _Silver thought to himself snidely. He'd had enough of listening to her self-righteous prattle. _'Karma? Please, the universe doesn't look after you, you look after yourself. That's how I've always lived my life and it's how I intend to continue living it' _Silver's thoughts were aflame, burning away at the feeble emotions which attempted to pacify him.

But as it subsided, within him something else began to grow, greater even then the fury he felt. It was a warmth but it soothed him. He gazed at the now forlorn Blaze. _'It's not fair; she only wants to help me. I'm being selfish, she is actually trying to help. How many other people have ever done that for me?' _The fire dimmed and the feeling grew.

'_Help? She has stolen you from your duty, you have no obligation to feel guilty for her' _His thoughts chorused back at him, feeding the fire and slowing the advance of the feeling. Silver felt numb, his body ripped in half by his internal conflict. On the one hand his thoughts and rationality, the thoughts with which he had governed his life with for ages, and on the other, feelings and emotions, which he had shut away for so long.

He floated through the chaos of his being, cast adrift and abandoned by both sides. _'What to do, what to do?' _Blaze lifted her head to meet his eyes; a small smile crept unto her face cautiously. Silver stared. _'She's my friend' _the thought was quiet; his own thoughts and feelings paid it no heed as they continued to battle over him. _'She's_ _my friend, my friend, my friend…My Friend!'_

'**_SHE"S MY FRIEND!' _**Silver thought with his entire mind, feelings and thoughts quieted instantly as the thought echoed through every fiber of his being, through and through and ever onwards. An inescapable feeling, which filled him. _'Look, I'm the one in charge here and I say we tell the truth. Not what she wants to hear but also not what I would of said. She deserves to be told the complete truth, she's the only person to ever willingly persist to help me and I'm not going to reward her with some stupid answer just because I'm spiteful or mushy' _Silver interjected into the proceeding silence of his mind. Their were no objections this time, both feelings and thoughts reluctantly relented, mutually disappointed that they hadn't won the argument. Silver took a deep breath, feeling fully confident fro the first time in his life that he knew exactly what he was going to say and mean.

"I believe I was justified in my decision. With all the evidence I was presented it was merely a matter of choosing between one life and thousands. In such equation the needs of the many had to be taken over the needs of one no matter what" Silver told her firmly, his eyes resolute and clear. This had been his decision.

Blaze hung her head, sorrow evident on her features and her entire body. Yet somehow there also was a flicker of pride, as if she was proud of his final resolution to remain honest to who he really was. _'Yes, that would have been Silver's answer' _She thought to herself with a tinge of disappointment. _'I suppose if he said anything else he wouldn't really of been Silver. Silver always chooses the greater good over the individual. I must just accept it' _

Silver knew he should feel sorry, but he couldn't. He'd told the truth, had he been in his look alikes position he to would of agreed to kill Sonic. _'Lying to her would have been worse than this, she deserved to hear his honest opinion, it was the least he could do after all she'd done for him.' _Silver walked to her, sighing heavily as he did so. He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She looked up to watch his face, searching for something in it. Silver smiled, a genuine smile, the type he hadn't used for years and years.

"I would still like to be your friend though" He said as she straightened up. She gave a little smile, quickly dabbing at a bit of moisture in her eyes before he could see it. She nodded her head slowly and gripped his hand in her own gently. The two stood in that semi-embrace for a while, the world passing around them unnoticed as they gazed at each other. For the first time in Silver didn't know how long, his mind was clear, he knew what he wanted to do.

The two let go eventually, parting to give each other a bit of room. Blaze seemed content to just stand there with him, a smile on her face. But for Silver there was still one more thing gnawing at his mind.

"You said you can take me anywhere in time right?" Silver asked awkwardly, a bit uncomfortable with what he knew was coming next. Blaze could see the anxiety clearly painted on his face and gave an equally awkward nod, a bit troubled that her pleasant little daydream had just been shattered.

"Could you, well, I mean. Could you take me to the last time I meet Eggman Nega?" Silver blurted the last few lines out in rapid-fire bullet mode, self conscious at what had to seem like putting his mission before everything else again. _'But that's not it. But I have to know; most of my life has been wasted on him. I just need to know how it all ends.' _

Blaze stared at him, a sort of numbness in her every action as if all life and colour had left her. Her eyes were glassy, but could not hide the dread, which lurked within them. She nodded her head slowly, almost robotically as she conjured up another portal next to her.

Silver wasn't quite sure what to make of her reaction. On the one hand she was clearly horrified by the idea so he assumed it was not a pleasant vision, but if it was truly so horrible wouldn't she of tried to dissuade him. Deciding he would never really know until he looked, Silver took a deep breath before plunging into he portal.

* * *

(This next part is purely the image of the future, which Silver sees when he looks through the portal) 

_A roaring detonation of incandescent teal energy announced the demise of Eggman Nega's final defense. With no traps or bot's left to turn to, the maniacal genius turned tail and ran._

_All around the dark factory floor was littered and strewn with the remains of countless assault robots designed to kill Silver. The Doctor couldn't understand how he had failed; it had all been so perfect. The perfect trap! And yet the Hedgehog had fought like a demon, ripping through his foes like they were tissue paper, his telekinetic powers reducing the army to shreds._

_A piece of debris smashed into the doctors head, leveling him to the floor, with a sense of emergency born from running for his life the doctor quickly raised himself to his knees-_

_But he got no further. Standing before him, warped in a menacing nimbus of teal energy Silver stood. Cold and ruthless his eyes were two frozen pits from whence no mercy came. Looking into the eyes of his lifelong and mortal foe the Doctor knew his fate was already decided._

"_So, finally learned the only way to stop me is to kill me, ehhh? Well I'm glad I've at least toughened you up boy, so go on make your decision. Are you a murderer or a hero?"_

"_For you their can be no forgiveness, and for me their can be no escape" Silver answered, his voice devoid of any form of inflection or emotion. Calmly he placed his palm to Nega's forehead, closing his eyes as he channeled power into his hand._

"_Que Sera Sera, What Will Happen Will Happen" Nega said calmly, relishing in the irony of life even at death's door._

_Silver released his power. A column of light shot forth from his hand, power born from a life time wasted searching, a power born from endless hate and suffering. It ripped through Silvers hand and blasted through Nega's mind. Once the light was gone only Silver remained._

_Then quietly and without hesitation he brought the entire building crashing down on him in a psychic maelstrom, sealing himself forever in his arch foes tomb._

(And now we return to our Silver)

* * *

Silver gaped; shock and terror had overcome him long before the vision had ended. Dead. He would die. His moment of glory he had dreamt of for so long would also be his tomb. There are no words or adjectives graceful enough to describe his anguish. "I will become that?" He asked. 

"Que Sera Sera," Blaze said by way of answer.

Mephiles: Thanks for reading it really means a lot to me, I would also appreciate your requests, concerns, complaints or criticism and praise in the form of a review. Thank you for reading. Stay tuned for the last really long Chapter.


	8. End Of The Line

Mephiles: Sorry this last chapter took so long but I've really been swamped with work and stuff. This is the last ful chapter I'll be putting up so I hope you guy's enjoy it. Thanks for all of you who have supported and reviewed my story, it really means a lot to me. So read and enjoy and don't forget to comment.

End of The Line

Serried ranks of images flashed past and around the numbed Silver, a multitude of words and colors blurring together to form a single inconsistent stream of inconsequence. For Silver though there was no comfort to be found in these bright and exuberant possibilities, images of the different tracks his life could of taken. He had made his choice and now all of these realities were merely forceful fantasies of another time.

Beside him stood Blaze her hands moving in a flurry of gestures as she took him from one alternate reality to another, explaining in detail how each one had come about. Her words fell on deaf ears, as Silver had lost interest in her visions several dimensions back.

'_So what if I'm happy in some of these dimensions? Those are different Silvers, their not me at all. How can she expect me to pay attention to any of these possibilities when she has already shown me which one I am doomed to?' _Silver thought to himself, his being so devoid of feeling that he couldn't even muster the strength to think the words venomously.

It was pointless, so very pointless. The more and more he watched these different Silvers the more he realized how impossible it would be for him to ever find happiness of any sort. They were nothing like him, not a single one of them. In some dimensions he was friendly or perhaps he didn't have psychic powers and in others he was a husband and a father but it didn't make any difference. The only similarities between those Silvers and himself were that they shared names. Only names.

Silver bowed his head in shame; his fate had already been predetermined for him, the mission, which for so long had been his only goal in life, would also be his death knell. So consumed had he become with hunting down and destroying Eggman Nega that he couldn't even attempt to live in a world devoid of his arch-foe. _'That is what happens when your sole reason to live is the destruction of other beings, you become your own destroyer as well' _Irony reminded him conceitedly.

'_End of the Line' _He thought to himself calmly. _'Blaze' _the thought was quiet, so small and insignificant that it might as well not of been their…but it was. _'Blaze' _it was stronger this time, Silver could here it, a rebellious notion threatening to push back his walls of isolation. But Silver shunted it aside and hid behind his walls, he'd spent a long time alone, he was confident that nothing could get through his emotional armour.

'_Blaze, Blaze, Blaze' _the thought wailed outside of his soul, growing louder and louder inside his head till it could no longer be ignored. _'Bl…a…ze?' _Silver thought slowly as he allowed the thought inside.

* * *

"In this particular dimension you rise to some prominence after…" Blaze stated as she gestured to the inert Hedgehog to take in his surroundings. 

"You?" He asked all of a sudden, rising from his near prone position to meet her eyes with his own, a strange almost far away gaze in them, as if he was attempting to remember something from very long ago.

"Pardon?" Blaze inquired, her brow furrowing in confusion at the senseless question.

Silver turned away from her motioning to the multitude of dimension, which played out different versions of Silver's life like so many Wide Screen Televisions. Blaze looked, following his gesture with curious eyes but could find nothing different to what had been their a few moments ago.

"I, don't think I quite understand?" Blaze hazarded after a short moment of absolute silence.

"In every single one of these dimensions each Silver is as different from the previous dimension's as can be" Silver answered her without turning away from the visions, his voice devoid of all inflection similar to how it had been when she'd originally met up with him. _'Cold and calculating' _She thought to herself miserably. _'I've failed, by showing him his most likely outcome, I've practically assured his untimely demise' _Blaze thought as she watched the Hedgehog analyze his alternate lives with a detached interest, arms folded in patient annoyance. The irony of the situation was unbearable.

"Throughout each of these dimensions there is only one consistency" He stated matter-of-factly. Blaze raised an inquiring eyebrow at this statement. Silver turned to regard her with an analytical stare.

"You. In every single one of these endless roads my life could of taken, for better or for ill, there is a Blaze." He said, his curiosity peaked once more.

"I begin to believe that there is some form of connection between our…persona's which I'm quite unaware of" He said.

'_No' _Blaze thought to herself in despair, as she knew what would come next. She gulped.

Silver couldn't help but feel a small smirk begin to twist his lip. It was about time this seemingly all-knowing female who had decided she had the right to just pluck him from his ignorance felt what trepidation was.

"I want to see why all Silvers are connected to Blazes," He requested calmly. Blaze bit her lip, biting back a possible comment as her mind raced from some or other excuse to ignore his latest request. In the end though, in the back of her head she knew their was no way to dodge the request. She'd taken the liberty of showing him all of this and now she had to accept the responsibility of it too.

Blaze opened her eyes in solemn resignation and lifted her arm. There was a crackle of blue lightening as the two were absorbed into the dimensional rift and then only space remained. For a moment, or possibly eons, the space merely hung in silence and then…

'She has taken him to the final destination' 

'_He will not return from it'_

'_We must prepare'

* * *

_

Then as soon as it had happened it was gone.

Silver landed upright on his feet professionally and became instantly aware of fire and heat. As he turned his head to examine his surroundings he mentally cursed. It was a cliff, _'a fiery cliff'_, hanging over a boiling sea of lava, _'a fiery boiling sea of lava'_

'_Would you stop that' _Silver thought authoritvely, quickly silencing the annoying little voice.

'_Fire' _He thought in annoyance. There was no disputing it, he was back where he had originally fell from, his so called 'Home Dimension' as Blaze had said. _'This particular time frame must be some form of temporal junction in which multiple dimensions coincide into one conglomerate' _Silver's logic deduced…logically.

He turned to Blaze and opened his mouth to ask a question, she silenced him though, and merely pointed straight ahead. Silver turned his eyes to gaze at what she was pointing at.

The third thing that Silver noticed was the fireball. Hovering just above the cliff was a small sphere of incandescent flame, which rippled with thermal energy, a miniature sun in it's own right.

The second thing that Silver noticed was Blaze, an exact doppelganger of his traveling companion standing a small way off, watching the unfolding scene with determination and interest.

But the first thing, and this is the one that really matters, which Silver noticed was, himself. Not precisely the same, this Silver looked younger and didn't bother to garb himself in dark apparel like Silver did. This Silver's eyes glowed with passion and life in stark contrast to the empty and duty driven Silver who watched him. Like opposite sides of a coin they were similar yet at the same time so dissimilar that only an idiot would of called the two comparable.

Older Silver watched with astonishment as his younger clone winced and yelped in pain. In each of his enclosed fist a sparkling Chaos Emerald thrummed with power, drawing the fire ever closer and closer to it. Silver didn't quite understand what was going on but he could feel the emotion thick in the air. Whatever was happening had to be completed. Or else.

Yet every time it looked like the younger Silver was about to successfully draw the flames into him, they rebuked him, leaving long flaming sores along his chest. Sweat beaded on his forehead, his teeth gnashed in painful concentration. Again and again he called the fire towards him with the Chaos Emeralds, and equally as many times did the flames rebut him away.

But he didn't give up; despite the futility of the situation he didn't give up…he couldn't give up, the fate of the entire world rested upon his shoulders now. Him and him alone.

'_Alone, I know what that's like, all my life I've struggled alone, carrying my burden with me so that no one else should ever have to feel it's weight' _The older Silver thought to himself grimly, his eyes resigned to the scene before him. He understood now what this meant, he could see clearly again. It was fate, his destiny had been predetermined, and his actions were merely prefabricated steps towards a set destiny, which he could no more change then he could avoid.

And just like that a sickening weight seemed to descend on him as if from nowhere. He finally had closure, even throughout the entire multiverse and all existence he was alone. He was alone here and now at the beginning and he already knew he'd be alone at the end. It was over; he was doomed before he'd even begin to live.

* * *

There is a common saying; 'Hell is other people' is it true? 

Isolation is a wall, a shield which acts as a last defense against the world, when a person chooses to reject all they've know in order to survive they use isolation as a shield to protect themselves from other people. At first it is a boon, a castle or safe haven from the ravages of time. But as the isolation becomes the only companion in your life it changes from a rescuer to a curse. A damnation of your own creation. A hell devoid of people.

But like with so many things by the time you realize it, it is so very close to being irreversible. So what is the point in continuing then? If it is irreversible and of your own devising then you can only blame yourself. Hating yourself is one of the most dangerous things you can ever do.

In a void such as this Silver found but one escape, to hurl himself into his duty with such unrelenting passion that he would be numbed to the pain of his life. Is this really the only way to change it?

Why bother to fight fate if life is going to make your choices for you? Sometimes it takes chance to begin the healing.

* * *

"I'll do it!" The doppelganger Blaze spoke, her voice firm and unswayable as she stepped forth confidently, to wrest the Chaos Emeralds from the young Silver. The surprise and shock of this decision was as evident, if not more, on the older Silver's face. Fragments and half-formed thoughts hurtled through his mind as he tried to make sense of the situation before him. 

'_She was helping, she was helping!' _His thoughts roared at him, trying to make him aware of the fact. He wasn't alone, he was never alone, here she was helping him and had been doing so ever since they met. Rationality had blinded him from seeing the obvious.

Their was a flash of light as the small sun embedded itself into Blaze, the chaos emeralds slowly falling to the floor. Then slowly, painfully slowly, she began to float away. Away from him, from his doppelganger, from life and from all existence.

'_**It's time to choose, what is your choice?**__' _The thought was large and firm, etched into his mind through his entire journey. The moment had come to choose between isolation or…

'_End of the Line' _He thought to himself with a small, if confused, smile.

"What are you doing?" Blaze asked, panic clear in her voice as she watched in surprise the figure of Silver dart towards her own receding doppelganger. He turned around, pausing for a moment to look her straight in the eye. Giving her a chance to see exactly what his choice had been.

"I'm going to save you," He said quietly. Silver quickly made his way to the fading shadow of Blaze, extending one hand to grab her and pull her back. Closer and closer he came until he was finally within reach and then…

The darkness poured in. From every corner of the world they came, all to familiar gray blobs marked by luminous red eyes. Silver cursed inside his head and steeled himself for combat. Like a swarm they came at him, circling and striking as a single mass.

He lashed out with his telekinetic powers, emerald flames searing great gashes within the gray ocean. Again and again he lashed out, but more and more they came, slowly gaining ground inch by inch. His mind was on fire with power, his body felt like it was burning from the inside out, his innards seared by the green fire's of his own might.

To no avail did he rage, slowly, painstakingly did they draw upon him, until at last they were all around him, his world became a gray ocean from which their was no escape. It drew him downwards in a maleficent spiral, slowly dragging him down into unknown depths. Amidst the gray he was a beacon of light, a flaring teal inferno surrounded by drab and drear.

'_Why struggle? This is not your fight. You did not ask to be drawn into this. You must return to your time, you must complete your mission or have you already forgotten what you swore to do?' _Silver heard an unknown voice whisper rebelliously within the confines of his own mind. But the more he listened the more he fought. He was done being a victim of logic and isolation; he'd been offered a chance to redeem his broken heart, he only prayed that it was not to late to earn his redemption.

'Why do you persist, why do you continue to fight for someone else, this is not your battle!' the voice continued, attempting to sway him from his futile fight. But Silver was in no mood to be swayed. 'I fight because of what she's done, living alone and only satisfying my needs is a selfish dream born from spitefulness, I've spent to much time wallowing away in self-pity, it's time to change my life' He countered, channeling renewed strength into both his physical and mental conflicts. 'Self-pity, the more accurate term would be realistic, you have a mission to complete and you must do so! Or are you so quick to forget your promise?' the voice retaliated snidely. 'No, I've not forgotten and I never will. But my mission need not be completed at the exclusion of all other factors nor should it matter more then my own life!' Silver roared into the dark oblivion of his broken soul and his gray world, the single thought carried such charge and force that it glowed, a teal blaze which surrounded everything, consuming the gray and granting Silver a short reprieve from the choking tide. 

A glimmering fire, a molten sphere of lava and crimson momentarily separated the teal and the gray waves from each other. Within it's confines he could see the visage of Blaze as she walked towards him. _'Then you are free, and no longer need me' _the voice carried within it such pride that the entire world seemed brighter, but Silver could hear the tears threatening to pour.

She smiled at him, her smile brighter than the sun, her tear-stained cheeks merely adding to her radiance. In that moment Silver understood. _'Good-bye Silver' _She spoke within his mind, then turned to leave. _'Wait!' _He cried out, another teal aura bursting out of him, holding the gray ocean back long enough for him to talk. She turned to him with a gaze of both sadness and joy. Silver paused, his heart racing and his mind racing along with it.

He would never see her again, what could he possibly say to express all she meant to him. The answer was so obvious Silver didn't even hesitate when he realized it. _'I love you' _He thought quietly. Blaze paused, and smiled again as she replied. _'I know' _and then darkness took him.

* * *

Redemption and Absolution can be found almost anywhere. Their only prerogative is to forgive oneself and to have that most crucial of all components. Friends.

* * *

Within the swirling gray ocean Blaze saw Silver's mind slowly carried away back to his timeline. She knew their was sadness within her, their would always by sadness that they had never had time to truly explain what they were to each other. But for the first time in an infinite space she felt content.

* * *

And far away beneath the gray ocean Silver's mind coiled slowly around his body as he returned home. For a moment he had a dream of Blaze and knew that he would never ever be able to see her again. But it was all right. 

End Of The Line.

Mephiles: Yipppeeee!!! It's finally come to a close. Next up is the extremely short epilouge. I must add that the inspiration for this entire fic comes from an episode of Cyborg 009 where Joe is taken back in time by a little girl. Thanks for all the comments so far and for all those of you who bothered to read it. I hope you had as much fun reading it as I did typing it. Until my next Fic. Goodbye.


	9. Epilouge

Mephiles: Hoorayyy, the final chapter is up for everyone to see. I would again just like to take this oppurtunity to thank everyone who even bothered to read and review my story. Your contributions kept me going to the end. I hope you like this small finisher and arn't confused to death. Thanks for everyrthing guys

Epilouge:

Light. Like a gentle stream it slowly pooled through his closed eyelids and into his head, his mind. It made its way through his conscious, slowly bringing him back, and feeling flowing back into his body reluctantly. _'Where am I?' _his mind raced for answers, searching fro something it could never find. _'Who am I?' _An eternity of searching was playing itself out in his mind in mere seconds. _'Life is connected, Karma' _He remembered it; he could so clearly remember those words, those concepts…but where?

'_Here and now…I am alive' _Realities collapsed and choice merged and synthesized, thoughts and memories vanished and were created. Rebirth and renewal in a single second. Endless years played themselves out in this tiniest of moments. Silver's mind slowly uncoiled, unconsciousness giving way to conscious.

'_I am ready to be…to be…to be'

* * *

_

Silver's eye's shot open like a shot from a gun, large golden eye's glowing as he stared around his surroundings in confusion. _'This is different…then before' _the thought half-formed somewhere deep in his mind. He was back on the plains… No he was still on the plains, he'd never left them…. Or had he only now reached the plains… Or perhaps there were no plains and he was just… Silver shook his head furiously, hoping to clear all of the grogginess from his mind and succeeding.

'_What a dream, I must have dozed off a bit there' _he mused to himself in silence, his lips curling into a faint smile despite his best efforts to stop himself. And then…for no apparent reason, he laughed. And laughed and laughed. He laughed as if his very life depended on it, all kinds of laughs from small giggles to loud chortles, he just laughed and laughed. He didn't know exactly why he was laughing and knew it was a bit silly to just laugh for random. But do you know what the best part was, he just didn't care, he just wanted to laugh. So, laughing as he was, and with nightfall fast approaching, he made his way to the nearest settlement and to wherever the road may take him.

* * *

Far off, on the crest of a lonely hill, stood three very familiar silhouettes. Blaze stood, erect as always, with light glimmering off her fiery from. Flanking her on either side were the grayish blobs, their piercing crimson eye's fixated on the rapidly dwindling form of the Silver Hedgehog.

Blaze couldn't, and didn't bother to, suppress her smile as she watched her friend burst into gales of laughter. The Judicators beside her waited for the hedgehog to vanish completely from sight before they turned to Blaze.

'We hope this will be the last time you abuse your power's' The Judicator's thought to her empirically. Blaze nodded in recognition. 

'_You know he will remember none of it, don't you?' _They thought again after a momentary pause. Blaze turned to her custodians with a bright smile and shrugged. _'Maybe'_ she thought.

There was a wink and a flash, and then the lonely little hill was left, knowing that it would never be lonely, because every thing is connected.

* * *

6 years later

* * *

A roaring detonation of incandescent teal energy announced the demise of Eggman Nega's final defense. With no traps or bot's left to turn to, the maniacal genius turned tail and ran.

All around the dark factory floor was littered and strewn with the remains of countless assault robots designed to kill Silver. The Doctor couldn't understand how he had failed; it had all been so perfect. The perfect trap! And yet the Hedgehog had fought like a demon, ripping through his foes like they were tissue paper, his telekinetic powers reducing the army to shreds.

A piece of debris smashed into the doctors head, leveling him to the floor, with a sense of emergency born from running for his life the doctor quickly raised himself to his knees-

But he got no further. Standing before him, warped in a menacing nimbus of teal energy Silver stood. Cold and ruthless his eyes were two frozen pits from whence no mercy came. Looking into the eyes of his lifelong and mortal foe the Doctor knew his fate was already decided.

"So, finally learned the only way to stop me is to kill me, ehhh? Well I'm glad I've at least toughened you up boy, so go on make your decision. Are you a murderer or a hero?"

"For you their can be no forgiveness, and for me their can be no escape" Silver answered, his voice devoid of any from of inflection or emotion. Calmly he placed his palm to Nega's forehead, closing his eyes as he channeled power into his hand.

"Que Sera Sera, What Will Happen Will Happen" Nega said calmly, relishing in the irony of life even at deaths door.

Then his eye's softened and Silver was all of a sudden not quite as menacing as he had been, and in the Good Doctor's chest a bit of hope fluttered once more. Silver lowered his hand, smiling as he slowly shook his head from side to side. Eggman furrowed his brow in confusion. _'Now what'_

Silver raised his eyes and stared Eggman right in the face with a small smile.

"It's my choice" Silver said softly and then raised his arm…

* * *

Mephiles: So what was his choice? I don't know which is why I didn't write it, it's a cliffhanger ending to the story. Thanks for everything guys. I hope you liked it. 


End file.
